Банк ВТБ: "Бросок удачи" - баскетбольный симулятор в приложении банка

Objective

VTB, Russia's largest bank, launched a gamified basketball arcade to drive daily app engagement during the VTB United League season. The campaign aimed to establish daily habit formation, stimulate financial transactions through game mechanics, and deepen customer loyalty by combining entertainment with real banking activities. The integration of basketball—a sport central to VTB's sponsorships—created emotional resonance while motivating repeated app usage.

Solution

VTB embedded a basketball arcade simulator directly into the VTB Online mobile banking app for six weeks (November 10 – December 22, 2025). The game featured two modes: 'Ball Master' (precision arcade with 10 swipes per round) and 'All-Stars Game' (10 escalating difficulty levels). Players assembled five-player rosters and climbed a progression system with six leagues (five standard tiers plus a premium 'Highest League'). A 'Glory Album' sticker collection system rewarded wins randomly. The game ingeniously tied real financial actions to game progression: purchases exceeding 1,000 rubles and phone top-ups of 150+ rubles unlocked in-game boosters and extra attempts. Prizes included VIP tickets to the All-Stars Match (February 15, 2026), partner gift certificates, and discount codes distributed through random draws on VTB social channels.

Results

1.6 million players participated over the six-week campaign. An impressive 83% completed product-related tasks (approximately 1.3 million users). Players averaged 27.6 actions each. The game reached 3.8 million unique users total, with 66,000 new daily active users acquired. Day-7 retention held at 9.44%, while day-14 retention was 6.81%. Social media reach totaled 2.5 million views across promotional posts. The campaign won first place in public voting at Tagline Awards 2025, best online game (third place) in the same awards, and bronze in the Mobile Games category at Workspace Digital Awards 2026.